This article includes affiliate links. If you purchase anything using these links I get a small commission. Thank you for supporting Bloom Computing!
Welcome to the grand finale of my Mac vs PC build series! In this series I’ve been looking at whether it is more cost effective to buy a Mac or build a PC with comparable specifications. If you haven’t already checked out the previous entries in this series check them out here and here.
In this final entry we’re going to end things with a bang by going all out! Previously, I was looking at which was the cheaper option. Today though I’ll be looking to see which is the most expensive! If you’re keeping score, its 1-1 right now. The Mac took the best “cheap” (if you can call it that) computer trophy, and the PC beat the Mac’s price for studio work. Today we will settle the price battle by finding out which is the most expensive new computer you can buy or build. We know Macs can be pretty pricey, but just how pricey can a PC get?
Let’s find out!
First, let’s see just how expensive the most expensive Mac actually is. The most expensive Mac line is by far the Mac Pro. Built to take on heavy task loads with ease, the Mac Pro is certainly the top of the line offering from Apple. The base model of Mac Pro comes in at a whopping $6999! And that’s for JUST the computer itself! Normally, this would be enough for one of my comparisons, but today I want to see how expensive things can really get. I’m also going to look at a full setup with all the bells and whistles.
We’ll be comparing the price more than the actual specifications of this build. If you’re interested in the nerdy bits of this one, you can see the full specs on Apple’s site here: https://www.apple.com/mac-pro/specs/
So what does the most expensive Mac setup give us?
Mac Pro: This is your actual computing device. With all the top options selected including Apple’s “Magic Keyboard” and “Magic Mouse” this comes in at about $12,348.
Pro Display XDR – Nano-texture glass This is Apple’s top of the line monitor and comes in at $5,999. This is just the monitor. No stand included. Let that sink in…
Pro Stand: This is the stand Apple sells for the monitor above. This too can be yours for about $999!
And how much does all of this cost? For all the Apple developed goodies listed above you can expect to pay a grand total of $19,346 (excluding taxes)! That’s the price of a much nicer user car (at time of writing) for a full computer setup!
So how much is the most expensive PC setup?
This is essentially the most expensive list of parts that in my opinion build a top quality PC. In some cases I found there were more expensive parts available for a part category. However, many of those parts would not be compatible with the rest of the build, meaning I had to pick a slightly less expensive option. Don’t worry! As a slight spoiler, these lower prices did not affect the end result…
CPU: AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3995WX
Cost (at time of writing): $7,941.90
Why this was picked: There are other better options but this was most expensive at time of writing.
GPU: NVIDIA A100 80G GPU NVIDIA Tesla PCI-E AI Deep Learning Training Inference Acceleration HPC Graphics Card
Cost: $25,789.00
Why this was picked: There are more expensive GPUs out there but this one is the only absurdly expensive one with actual display outputs. Weird I know, but the goal of the others is for powering AI. This is the same, but at least you can use it as a normal GPU.
Memory: OWC 256GB (8x32GB) DDR4 3200MHz
Cost: $695.99
Why this was picked: This is an insane amount of memory and the most expensive, reliable combo I could find.
Newegg: OWC 256GB (8x32GB) DDR4 3200MHz PC4-25600 CL22 2RX8 ECC Unbuffered SODIMM 1.2V 260-pin Memory RAM
Primary Storage: Western Digital WD_BLACK SN850P NVMe SSD for PS5 consoles
Cost: $1,075.00
Why this was picked: This may be a PS5 SSD but it will work in a PC just fine.
Secondary Storage: WD Purple Pro WD181PURP 18TB
Cost: $8,011.85
Why this was picked: Why not add additional storage?
Newegg: WD Purple Pro WD181PURP 18TB 7200 RPM 512MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5′ Internal Hard Drive
Motherboard: ASUS Pro WS WRX80E-SAGE SE WIFI
Cost: $903.41
Why this was picked: It fits all our parts, has WiFi, and costs a lot of money.
CPU Cooler: Phanteks GLACIER ONE 360
Cost: $207.96
Why this was picked: Great liquid CPU cooling and it fits the CPU selected.
PSU: MSI – MEG Ai1600T
Cost: $783.08
Why this was picked: Lots of power for everything in this list…also very expensive
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Elite PH-ES916E_BK
Cost: $2,202.36
Why this was picked: It’s a case and everything fits.
Case Fans: Cooler Master MasterFan SF360R ARGB 360mm Square Frame Fan
Cost: $138.99
Why this was picked: More cooling is always more better
Newegg: Cooler Master MasterFan SF360R ARGB 360mm Square Frame Fan
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster AE-9
Cost: $349.99
Why this was picked: I wouldn’t normally add a sound card to a build but this is supposed to be expensive so we’re going all out lol
Newegg: Creative Sound Blaster AE-9 Sound Card (Metallic Gray)
Monitor: LG 48″ (47.5″ Viewable) UltraGear UHD OLED with Anti-Glare Low Reflection 120Hz Gaming Monitor with G-SYNC
Cost: $3,293.99
Why this was picked: It’s a monitor and it’s expensive
Keyboard and Mouse: Logitech MX 5500 Revolution Black Cordless Cordless Desktop keyboard & Mouse Kit
Cost: $1,140.00
Why this was picked: Logitech makes great stuff… and this was the most expensive keyboard/mouse combo available
Newegg: Logitech MX 5500 Revolution Black Cordless Cordless Desktop keyboard & Mouse Kit
Total Cost to build
At the time of writing, these parts come to a total of $52,568.52. This is a whopping $33,222.52 more than the Mac Pro setup! And that’s not including the cost to install Windows!
Alternative Option: Buy a Pre-Built
So that was the the BYO option, how much is the most expensive pre-built I can find on Newegg?
I was able to find the VRLA Tech AI Data Science Workstation which is a similar build for $47,224.17 on Newegg. This is just for the computer itself and no peripherals though, which brings us to $51,658.16 if you’re using the ones picked above
Newegg: https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-02AD-001G7?Item=9SIBM00KE03272
Conclusion
You can spend a lot on a computer…honestly waaaay more than I expected. I would not recommend anyone spend this kind of money on a computer unless you absolutely needed it for some reason. I’m sure there’s a use case for this somewhere, but for me every piece of this is overkill. That said, it looks like PC loses this battle! You can buy the most expensive Mac setup for much cheaper than the most expensive PC.
As always, if you’re looking to save money, the used market can help you save a ton! With patience and a bit of research there are always deals to be found. And if you aren’t sure what to look for you can always send me a message through the contact page. I’m always happy to help folks find exactly what they need on a budget!
That wraps it up for my Mac series! Maybe in the future I’ll do some more deep dives into the world of Macs. Maybe even checking out what I can find on the used market! For now though, I’ll stick to my used PCs on a budget.
Leave a Reply